WASHINGTON, D.C. -

Today’s connected vehicles are generating infinitely more real-time data than drivers, manufacturers or dealers could have imagined five to 10 years ago.

This information monitors the performance of the vehicle for maintenance, dependability and research purposes, as well as providing safety features for the driver and passengers. These software packages are increasingly becoming standard offerings in many vehicles sold today.

Who doesn’t like features in driver-assist packages like back-up cameras and lane-assist warnings when another vehicle creeps into our blind spot on its way to passing us on a high-speed highway?

During the fifth Annual Mobility Talks International, which leads into the Washington Auto Show, subject matter experts representing manufacturers, dealers and advocacy groups discussed how consumer privacy concerns and expectations are being addressed today and how consumer privacy should be addressed going forward.

Even though 20 major global automakers, under the guidance of two prominent industry trade associations — the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the Association of Global Automakers —  have adopted a self-imposed code of conduct which was reviewed with the Federal Trade Commission in November 2014, and updated in 2018, consumers may be unaware of the standards manufacturers have set for themselves to protect consumer privacy.

The “Consumer Privacy Protection Principles: Privacy Principals for Vehicle Technologies and Services” apply to “the collection, use and sharing of covered information in association with vehicle technologies and services available on cars and light trucks sold or leased to individual consumers for personal use in the United States.”

The term “covered information” is defined as “identifiable information that vehicles collect, generate, record or store in electronic form that is retrieved from the vehicles by, or on behalf of, a participating member in connection with vehicle technologies or services; or personal subscription information provided by individuals subscribing or registering for vehicle technologies and services.”

“This is the industry’s code of conduct and our guidelines for being transparent on what we are collecting and why,” said Hilary Cain, Toyota’s director of technology and innovation policy. “With data security there is a use restriction which prohibits automakers from using consumer information for marketing or sharing information with third parties.”

Cain said while states try to establish their own consumer privacy laws or regulations, it would be better for consumers to retrieve and manage personal information with a single, robust federal law, possibly modeled after the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) which gives consumers more control over their data.

“In California, consumers can request access or deletion of their data,” Cain said. “It’s not always clear who was driving, so manufacturers must identify consumers.”

Greg Scott, executive director of the Global Alliance for Vehicle Data Access, advocated for a federal privacy law that would replace CCPA, which he said went from draft form to passing the California State Assembly in four days.

“There needs to be a common federal framework for privacy issues, especially in the used vehicle market where cars are owned by three or more people and transfer of data is an issue,” he said.

Cain said manufacturers rely on data that monitors the mechanical performance of the vehicle.

“We understand why consumers do not want advertising sent to their vehicle screens and why they don’t want the manufacturer sharing bad driver information with insurance companies,” she said.

Brad Miller, representing the National Automobile Dealers Association, said the manufacturers and the dealers “want to get this right.”

“This is a unique industry and consumer privacy issues cannot be fixed with a one-size-fits-all approach,” he said. “Cybersecurity issues are different from privacy of information in vehicles.”

Panelists were optimistic for strong, clear federal privacy laws that protect consumers versus a patchwork of state laws that would lack clarity and would promote confusion among consumers, manufacturers and dealers.